


A Voice Out Of This World

by Zino



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Humor, M/M, Pre-debut, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-23
Updated: 2018-10-24
Packaged: 2019-03-08 16:05:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 14,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13461702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zino/pseuds/Zino
Summary: Lu Han really wants to debut as an idol. There’s only one problem – he’s dead.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Big thanks for my beta, P!

Minseok dreams of many things. Being able to sing in front of huge crowds. Having his own fansites. Barcelona winning La Liga. Losing weight. Debuting soon. Success. Daesangs.

 

Sometimes he dreams of that perfect steaming cup of coffee he’s made himself from scratch.

 

A lot of times he just dreams of being able to sleep an hour or two longer between the hectic training classes. He’s dreaming his muscles would stop hurting and his throat would feel less sore after hours and hours of singing practice. Dreaming of being a fast learner, like Baekhyun, so he wouldn’t have to stay and practice on his own after everyone else has gone home already.

 

Minseok dreams of many things but he never dreams of ghosts. Not even when he’s having nightmares.

 

Which is why he’s feeling slightly confused when a head pops out of the wall just next to him, wishing him ‘good morning’.

 

Minseok’s pretty sure he’s awake. In fact, he remembers waking up about a half an hour ago, heading for the gym to exercise before any of the other trainees wake up flooding the place. It’s only a little past five in the morning but he’s most definitely not dreaming the pretty head next to his.

 

Maybe it’s a hologram. Meant to scare people. Zitao, the Chinese trainee, had been complaining about weird noises in the shower earlier this week. The kid has become too scared to shower alone anymore after dance practices and Minseok’s pretty sure there’s someone messing with him and the other trainees. Someone scaring people for good laughs. There’s no other explanation, because Minseok doesn’t dream of ghosts and if he’s awake the head next to him makes even less sense.

 

“Good morning”, he answers the head, taking a cautious step back because hologram or not, a head coming out of the wall is still pretty freaky looking. Even if the face on the head is pretty. The hairstyle on the hologram looks a little outdated and in need of a proper cut. The dark and long strands remind Minseok of the hairstyle idols often wore maybe five years ago.

 

His words are barely out of his mouth when the eyes belonging to the head widen. Then there’s suddenly a whole body coming out of the wall and Minseok backs off even more, giving the hologram the space it clearly needs. Someone’s really going all out with this stuff. Luckily, it’s just Minseok here and not Zitao. Poor boy would probably be too scared to use the gym ever again. Before Minseok can get a good look at the hologram-boy’s body (he does manage to note that aside from being pretty he looks rather young) the holo-boy speaks again, this time faster and words more slurred together than before. Minseok thinks he can hear an accent. It sounds oddly similar to their other trainees from China.

 

“You can see me!?” The holo-boy looks a lot like what Minseok imagines himself looking when whatever group he’s going to be in, wins their first grand prize in the future. Also, is it normal for holograms to speak? This is some advanced technology here, Minseok thinks. Almost too good to be used just to scare people off. He’s resisting the urge to touch the holo-boy just to make sure his hand would actually go through him. He speaks to him… to it, instead.

 

“Yes…?”

 

“Oh my god, finally!” The holo-boy sinks to his knees, his eyes wet with what seem to be tears of relief. Minseok’s still trying to wrap his head around the fact that the holo-boy almost seems like he’s having a conversation with Minseok. But that’s impossible, right? That kind of technical masterpiece belongs to anywhere else but to the gym in SM Entertainment building. Unless there’s a mic somewhere and an actual person talking to him through it.

 

“I feel like I’ve been wandering here for years, trying to talk to people, but no one ever answers me! And I swear it’s not the accent. I’ve been trying to talk to Chinese people as well and still getting nothing back.” The holo-boy rambles on and Minseok can’t really do anything but keep staring at him. He’s quickly coming to the scary conclusion that the boy in front of him may not be a hologram after all. Maybe the hologram was actually the white wall behind them, so it just looked like the possibly-not-holo-boy walked through it. The maybe-holo-boy in front of him seems a little transparent and if Minseok squints his eyes he’s pretty sure he can see through him. Then again, maybe it’s just the lightning and the fact that it’s not even six in the morning yet and Minseok has only been sleeping five hours last night. His eyes are probably just playing tricks on him. The boy in front of him is just some new trainee he hasn’t met before and it’s only Minseok’s brain that’s coming up with these crazy hologram or not-hologram explanations.

 

To be certain he touches the holo-or-not-holo-boy with his right hand. It goes through the soft looking dark brown hair straight into the boy’s head. Minseok shrieks and pulls his hand back in such a quick motion that he almost stumbles backwards because of it.

 

The most-definitely-not-human-boy stops his rambling and looks scandalized.

 

“W-why would you stick your hand in my head!? That didn’t feel very nice!”

 

Minseok doesn’t reply, only stumbles backwards as fast as he can. “What are you!?” Holograms shouldn’t feel like anything, he thinks. But what he had felt, was coldness. Electricity too. Like small needles attacking his hand. He’s never going to accidentally stick his hand into anyone’s brain ever again.

 

The something-boy walks forward the same number of steps Minseok’s using to get away from him. He looks desperate. Or maybe that’s his psychopath face and Minseok’s about to get killed.

 

“Don’t come any closer!” Minseok raises his hands to protect himself. He’s not sure how exactly he’s supposed to protect himself from this _thing,_ but it doesn’t hurt to try. He would prefer not becoming a dead body Chaneyol is going to find when he arrives at the gym too. The-something-boy stops at Minseok’s harsh voice and fidgets in his place, trying to come up with something to say. Now that Minseok takes a better look at him he realizes the-something-boy isn’t even properly touching the floor, he’s just kind of… floating above it. The realization makes Minseok’s stomach flip.

 

“Look”, the thing in front of him finally speaks again, big eyes looking pleadingly at Minseok. The trainee is having none of it. He has better survival instincts than to lower his guard just because the boy… thing, in front of him is making a cute face.

 

“What are you?” Minseok repeats the previous question, hissing it through his teeth. If this creature is indeed a hologram someone’s probably going to have a big laugh at Minseok’s expense with the way he’s acting at the moment. But that’s really the least of his worries right now. Better to be safe than sorry later.

 

“I’m Lu Han”, the thing answers him, “and I think… I think I’m a ghost.”

 

Kim Minseok dreams of many things but he doesn’t dream of ghosts. Ever. Which means this isn’t a dream.

 

Minseok’s probably never ran out of the gym that fast in his entire life.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, thanks to my beta, P! Also, I don't know that much about how idol training works in SM, so treat this as some kind au regarding that.

Lu Han doesn’t dream anymore. He doesn’t even remember the last time he dreamt, let alone slept. Probably back when he was still alive. Whenever that was. When you don’t sleep five to seven hours per day, keeping track of time is much harder. A week feels like two weeks, or maybe three and a year feels like half a decade. When you can walk through walls and other obstacles it really messes up your sense of distance. And most importantly, when nobody’s been talking to you for what feels like years, it really messes up your head. Imagine having no one to boast to about ManU’s success except yourself. To Lu Han it’s an absolute nightmare.

 

So, it’s not a surprise the happiest moment of his afterlife was the “good morning” he heard earlier today. Communication, _finally_!

 

On the downside the other boy fled the scene pretty fast, but that was understandable. Lu Han just told him he was a ghost after all. That didn’t damp his mood too much. It didn’t affect the most important thing - the boy clearly saw him. Lu Han wasn’t completely alone anymore.

 

For months, possibly for _years_ , he’s been trying to contact someone, anyone. He’s been stalking the trainees in the showers, trying to knock off soaps from the shelves and using some unknown ghost powers to freeze the water (he was clearly a lousy ghost because the steam had kept rising from the hot water and the trainee under it had continued to enjoy his warm shower). Lu Han’s been standing next to people in the hallways, yelling things into their ears. Blowing air into them. One time he thought he had finally made a breakthrough when a boy, some Chinese kid, had slightly whimpered under Lu Han’s breath on his neck. In the end Lu Han hadn’t managed to get his further attention, so he had concluded the boy had a very sensitive neck and that was that. It was still the closest to any kind of communication he’d had for years.

 

Lu Han has sung with the trainees in the singing classes. He’s been practicing choreographies of other idol groups with them, has been taking classes for acting and variety shows. He’s been doing everything and anything a trainee with big dreams would, not worrying about being dead at all.

 

Lu Han just really, _really_ wants to debut already.

 

He’s vaguely sure the last time he dreamt, it was either about ManU or debuting. The only thing telling him it hasn’t actually been _decades_ since his death is Junmyeon. He manages to remember the guy from the days he was still a trainee, still alive. They had trained together for some time before Lu Han had died. And if Junmyeon is _still_ a trainee that clearly means it hasn’t even been ten years since his death. Surely SM wouldn’t keep someone as a trainee for that long. Right? Lu Han sure hopes so, even if just out of pity for Junmyeon. Nobody should stay as a trainee for that many years. It really takes a toll on your mental health. Much like being a ghost and laughing alone in the empty hallways after 3am when everyone else has gone home.

 

Lu Han isn’t stupid of course, he regularly checks the dates from the newspapers other trainees bring with them. But the thing is, the year 2011 just doesn’t tell him anything anymore. What year did he even die? What year was he born in? He’s not sure if it’s a ghost thing or something else, but he feels like he’s slowly losing his memories of his past life. Just some time ago he realized he couldn’t remember the name of his mother anymore. Once, years(?) ago, he had tried to float back to China. It had been a lesson well learned – Lu Han can’t leave the SM Entertainment building. The further he goes the weaker he feels, until he’s at the stage where he can barely move but is still very much dead-alive. Not wanting to spend the rest of his haunting days in some dark alleyway unable to do anything but lie there, Lu Han has been restlessly wandering in the SM building, for a long, _long_ time.

 

Well, not wandering. Training. Because he just wants to debut before he forgets he wants it. Just because he’s a ghost doesn’t mean he can’t sing or dance well. Nobody just sees him doing so anymore.

 

Nobody until Minseok anyway.

 

Here’s what Lu Han knows about his new savior: Minseok’s been a trainee for some time. Maybe three years, or two. Possibly five. Anyway, time really doesn’t matter to Lu Han anymore. Minseok likes football and Barcelona, so naturally Lu Han has spent too much time reminding the other trainee that ManU clearly is the superior team (he’s going to kill himself if he ever forgets about ManU. And it doesn’t matter that he’s already dead. He’s going to do it). For some odd reason Minseok seems to have an unhealthy obsession with Americano. That, Lu Han will probably never understand. He also knows Minseok has sweet dance moves, a pat-able ass and that he’s usually rather shy around new people.

 

Luckily Lu Han isn’t new. He’s practically known Minseok for years already. They’ve been even sharing showers. Not that Minseok knows this but that’s beside the point.

 

But in the end Minseok had been just another pretty face in the building, just another trainee who hadn’t noticed Lu Han standing next to them in the showers (Lu Han’s pretty sure he can’t sweat anymore, let alone actually feel the water on his skin, but it’s not a crime to want to take a (mentally) refreshing shower after hours of dancing, is it!? And it’s not like he can turn the shower on by himself so…). But now Minseok is so much more to him. He’s Lu Han’s lifeline. Or deadline. Or whatever lines there are for ghosts. It’s not like there are some ghost-hyungs floating around that he can ask about these things.

 

Lu Han has a weak theory why Minseok suddenly sees him now and he’s pretty sure the other boy’s not going to like it when he hears it.

 

 _Hears it_.

 

Someone is finally hearing whatever’s on Lu Han’s mind. He’s so happy he could cry (he’s pretty sure he actually did before Minseok went and stuck his hand in his ghost-brain).

 

So, their first _mutual_ meeting didn’t exactly go the way Lu Han had planned. The problem probably lay within the way Lu Han had just blurted out he was a ghost. He should have first asked if Minseok even believed in ghosts. Or maybe made some small talk about football, since that seems to be a mutual interest between them. It’s a shame Minseok didn’t become a trainee a little earlier, Lu Han feels like they could have been great friends.

 

 _Can still be_ , he corrects himself. Just because he’s dead, it doesn’t mean the two of them can’t be friends. After years of waiting for someone to notice him, Lu Han sure as hell isn’t letting Minseok slip away. He has finally found a way to check ManU’s latest results and ask someone how Ronaldo is doing. And maybe, if he’s being really nice, Minseok will show him all the goals he’s missed these years. Now that the other trainee finally hears him, Lu Han can finally convince him that Ronaldo is a way better player than Messi will ever be. And ask Minseok what exactly he sees in Americano because the drink looks and smells like a black piss to Lu Han.

 

Lu Han may not dream anymore, but it doesn't mean he doesn't have dreams.

 

And now he finally has someone that can help him fulfill those dream of debuting as an idol.

 

With a new hope in his dead and probably already molding veins, Lu Han runs… well, _floats_ after Minseok.

 

He’s not letting this chance slip away.


	3. Chapter 3

Things Minseok thought he would never experience:

  1. Hating bread.
  2. Growing taller than Chaneyol.
  3. Letting Yifan beat him in arm wrestling.
  4. Being chased by a pretty ghost.



 

But here he is, running for his life and very much ignoring the shouts of “please, just stop” coming from behind him. He sure of it now - that thing is no hologram but a real freaking ghost instead. And he sure as hell isn’t going to stop running just because a ghost tells him so. In fact, all it does is make Minseok run even faster. He’s almost at the front door. Only a couple more meters and he’ll be out in the public where there are more people that will hopefully prevent this ghost from killing him.

 

He slams the door open, not caring that he’s still wearing his gym shoes and runs to the streets. It’s still early in the morning and the air feels chilly, despite being summer season, but right now Minseok doesn’t even miss his jacket left behind in the locker rooms. He’s headed for the 24/7 corner store nearby where he can be surrounded by other people and buy salt to fight off this killer ghost.

 

“Don’t go, please! I don’t have anyone else!” Desperate shouts follow him and despite not wanting to do it, Minseok reluctantly slows down for a few seconds and turns to look back. The ghost is loitering in the doorway of the SM building as if he doesn’t want or can’t step outside of it.

 

Minseok sure hopes so.

 

“Minseok, please”, the ghost pleads again and he’s… he’s not as scary as Minseok thought a ghost would be. Then again, maybe this is some ghostly trick to lure him back in to be killed. Minseok shivers at the thought of his bloody body being the topic in tomorrow’s newspaper. He takes a last quick look at the sad-looking ghost boy and runs off.

 

It would be ideal, of course, to never go back to the SM building and try to forget whathappened in the morning. Unluckily for Minseok, he’s still a trainee and he sure as hell isn’t going to quit now, after years of training, just because some ghost decided to start haunting him for no reason.

 

So, a few hours after the whole meeting with the dead, Minseok is back. But this time he’s armed and dangerous. A can of salt in his backpack and newly bought iron spoons in his pockets. Jongdae, a rather new trainee, gives him a funny look when they walk together to their Chinese class. Minseok knows he looks funny, holding his spoons like they are knives, but you never know when the ghost boy is going to appear again.

 

“Hyung, what…” Jongdae begins but Minseok stops him. He doesn’t even want to start explaining. Not that he even could. Despite holding the spoons, he’s still half sure the whole morning fiasco was some kind of weird hallucination from his part.

 

“Don’t ask”, he shakes his head when they enter the small classroom. It’s full of familiar faces and Minseok feels a little safer here. After all, it’s one ghost against the ten of them and he’s armed with spoons and salt. Jongdae still gives him a look like he thinks Minseok’s gone mad and it’s not that far from the truth. Maybe he’s just been stressed enough to start hallucinating pretty ghost boys. The life of a trainee isn’t the easiest. In fact, it’s anything but that. Add university work to that and it’s no wonder Minseok’s brain can overheat from time to time. When today’s classes are done he’s going to take a nice long rest before he goes crazy. Crazy trainees won’t debut as idols and Minseok is going to debut, no matter what. This year or the next one. Before he’s too old for that.

 

The class proceeds smoothly. Minseok’s Chinese still sucks despite him hanging out with Zitao, Yixing and Yifan regularly. His only salvation is that the rest of the class isn’t doing so hot either. Jongin’s tapping his leg against the floor and it’s clear he’d rather be dancing right now than practicing how to pronounce difficult Chinese words. Truth to be told, Minseok would rather be doing something else too, but he tries to concentrate on the task at hand the best he can anyway.

 

Which is a little difficult when the ghost boy from the morning suddenly floats through the wall into their classroom yelling, “ _finally_ I found you again!”

 

Minseok’s reaction at the sight of someone casually entering the room through the wall is to jump high up from his seat. He then stumbles backwards, manages to kick his chair down and fall to the floor with it. Good thing his spoons are still in the pockets of his hoodie, where he had put them once the class started. Still lying on the floor, he grabs the salt from his backpack to his left hand and holds the spoons with his right one.

 

“Don’t come any closer”, he hisses waving the spoons like swords. The ghost boy only stares at him, with the rest of the class, wondering what the hell Minseok is doing. Minseok would wonder about it too, if he wasn’t too busy trying to fight off the evil spirit.

 

“Hyung…?” Jongdae asks, eyebrows so high up they end up being hidden by his fringe. Minseok takes his eyes off the ghost for a millisecond to ask Jongdae, “you don’t see him!?”

 

“See what?” is the one reply Minseok didn’t want to hear. This is it, he’s really gone mental. He’s never going to debut now, is he. And if he is, Minseok is already afraid of all those interviews where someone is going to reveal that yeah, when he was still a trainee, Minseok suddenly decided to fight an invisible enemy armed with spoons and salt.

 

“Minseok, please”, the ghost boy suddenly speaks again and only now it hits Minseok that the ghost knows his name, “I’m not going to do anything! I just need your help. You’re the only one who can see me after all.”

 

The ghost boy makes its best puppy face and Minseok has to look away because he’s been weak to those ever since Baekhyun became a trainee a while ago.

 

“Please! I’m not a bad person… or a ghost! You can ask Junmyeon, he knows me! Or did know me at least…” the ghost boy pleads again doing a deep bow and everything. Minseok doesn’t mean to lower his guard but he can feel his grip on the spoons loosen a bit. If the ghost boy truly wanted him dead, he probably wouldn’t have wished him ‘good morning’ earlier. Or planned to attack him in the middle of Chinese class filled with other people.

 

Right. He’s still in class. Holding spoons and salt and pretty much acting like a crazy person, talking to himself. Minseok dares to take a quick look at his classmates and everyone is staring at him, no surprises there. He doesn’t really know how he’s going to get out of this situation without losing his reputation, but he can try.

 

“Erm, there… there was a bug…?”

 

He’s not Zitao so his reaction of falling over and arming himself with spoons doesn’t really make sense, but it’s still miles better than “by the way there’s a ghost standing next to you, Chaneyol”.

 

“There was?” the ghost boy answers, his gaze already scanning the classroom.

 

“I wasn’t talking to you”, Minseok snaps automatically, before slamming his hand to his mouth. He really shouldn’t be talking to the ghost no one else sees.

 

“Hyung, are you feeling sick…?” Jongdae sounds worried when Minseok finally sits again, spoons and salt back in his backpack. Minseok flashes him the best smile he can, mumbles something about the bug suddenly attacking him again and finally proceeds to fiercely apologize to the teacher for interrupting the class.

 

The ghost boy is still looking at him, looking ready to launch into another series of pleads and puppy faces, so Minseok experiences another thing he never thought he would. Consciously making a promise to a ghost no one else but him can see, when he silently, his mouth barely moving, mutters,

 

“I’ll talk to you after class.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, my beta, P, deserves huge thanks.

Things Lu Han thought he would never experience again:

  1. The taste of warm steamed bun in his mouth
  2. Playing football with his friends
  3. Feeling tears roll down his cheeks
  4. Having a conversation with someone



 

If being proven wrong feels this good, he wishes he could experience it more often. After years and years of talking to yourself, finally speaking to someone else feels pretty freaking great. Even if his conversation partner is still acting a little hostile towards him. Lu Han doesn’t want to blame him - after all it’s not every day a ghost wants to talk to you. He’s just not quite sure what Minseok is trying to achieve by pointing that spoon at him. Lu Han lifts his arms up just in case, imagining the spoon is a gun pointed at him. The last thing he wants is Minseok running away from him again. If the spoon makes the other guy feel safer, so be it. Lu Han can sacrifice a bit of his pride and act like he’s actually scared of that little shining piece of tableware.

 

“Okay”, he begins, not wanting to screw up this time, “thank you for speaking with me.”

 

Minseok doesn’t reply anything, just keeps pointing that spoon at Lu Han. They are in an empty hallway on the upper floor of the SM building. It seems Minseok doesn’t want to speak to him when there are other people around. At least that’s the conclusion Lu Han came to after spending the whole Chinese class trying to talk to the shorter man, but not getting any response. He almost started to worry Minseok didn’t see him anymore, before the other man started to send death glares pointed at Lu Han by the end of the class.

 

It had never felt so good to be hated by someone.

 

“I know this must be an absurd situation to you. The fact that I’m a…” Luhan continues.

 

“A ghost”, Minseok finally speaks.

 

“Yeah. That. But I assure you, I have no bad intentions”, Lu Han smiles, even if he vaguely remembers people saying he looked like a creep when doing that. Minseok doesn’t look more afraid of him, so his smile is obviously not that bad.

 

“What are your intentions then?” Minseok finally asks, still sounding hostile but holding his spoon a little lower than a second ago Lu Han’s ghostly smile obviously works way better than the one he had when he was still alive. His intentions are still, thankfully, clear too.

 

“I want to debut”, Lu Han hastily explains, lowering his hands when Minseok doesn’t look like he’s going to stab Lu Han with the spoon anymore. A confused expression spreads on Minseok’s face.

 

“Debut?”

 

“As an idol, of course. I am a trainee, like you. Well, was.”

 

“So, you…” Minseok begins, looking unsure as if doubting he had heard the other correctly, “you’re dead, but you still want to become an idol?”

 

Lu Han nods. He has had plenty of time to think about why he’s here. Stuck in this building. It must be his desire to debut. He’d watched plenty of horror films when he was still alive and there’s a reason why ghosts exist. They can’t find peace for one reason or another and end up wandering aimlessly, eventually turning bitter and angry and killing people. Lu Han really hopes he can find peace before it comes to that. Sure, he had some possessive tendencies when he was alive, but not enough to actually want to possess someone. He likes being a friendly ghost that doesn’t want to smash people against the wall. Well, not that he could anyway, because he sucks ass at being a ghost. He can’t even make Zitao scared and that boy is scared of _everything_.

 

He had died while he was a trainee, so it’s natural Lu Han can’t find peace until he’s achieved the one thing he came to SM for – debuting as an idol. He’s not exactly sure how it would be possible for him to debut anymore, but at least he now has Minseok and doesn’t need to wonder about these things alone anymore.

 

“I think it’s the only way I can find peace and move on”, Lu Han sighs, resting his hand on his cheek. Or tries to, because being the lousy ghost he is, his hand just goes straight through his cheek. Minseok makes a noise and Lu Han knows he’s disgusted. Still, he doesn’t point the spoon higher at him, so Lu Han’s clearly doing something right.

 

“And you need me for…?” Minseok asks, narrowing his eyes at Lu Han. Despite everything Minseok seems to take the news in rather well. Lu Han had been expecting more running away or screaming, but the other man is still here, still talking to him. It makes something inside his stomach feel nice and bubbly.

 

“You’re the only one who can see me”, Lu Han explains, “so naturally you have to help me, right?”

 

“Right… because I know _so_ much about how to make dead people debut…” Minseok rolls his eyes, his voice thick with sarcasm. He probably doesn’t, but neither does Lu Han. The only thing he does know is that two brains are better than one. He briefly considers adding ‘do it or I will haunt you forever”, but that doesn’t really fit the sweet (and yet manly) ghost image he’s trying to sell to Minseok.

 

“Minseok”, Lu Han begins instead, “I know you’re a great person. You always stay late to practice and you’re a good hyung to the younger trainees. You make it seem like whatever you eat is the tastiest thing ever. You’re passionate about singing and football, just like me. And… I don’t know why you feel so insecure about your body, you have nice muscles and…”

 

“Whoa, _whoah!_ Have you been _stalking_ me?” Minseok blushes furiously and soon that spoon is pointed straight at Lu Han once again. Dead or alive, it seems Lu Han’s habit of saying the wrong things at the wrong time is still there. If he stays dead for a long time, maybe he should practice keeping his mouth shut sometimes. Or at least learn how to think before speaking.

 

“Not stalking! It’s not my fault you guys don’t notice me when I’m standing right next to you”, Lu Han defends himself. It’s probably better not to mention he’s been hanging out next to them in the showers as well. Minseok doesn’t seem the type to take that kind of news well. Even when he has nothing to be ashamed of and Lu Han knows he doesn’t. After all, he’s seen _everything._

 

“But my point being… you’re a nice guy Minseok, and I am putting my faith in you. So please, _please,_ help me debut. I don’t want to become a bitter ghost who ends up killing trainees here, just because I couldn’t become an idol myself!” Lu Han bites his lower lip in a way he knows makes him look more miserable and possibly more attractive. He only has everything to lose, so hell if he isn’t using all the talents he has to make sure Minseok agrees to help him. The spoon is being lowered again so the pleading face Lu Han has on is certainly having an effect on Minseok. He secretly thanks his mother and father for giving him such good genes.

 

“I can’t believe this is really happening…” Minseok rubs his forehead. Lu Han can practically taste the hope on his tongue even though it’s been years since he’s actually tasted anything.

 

“You… you’ll help me then?” Ghostly tears are starting to form at the corners of Lu Han’s eyes. He’s glad it was Minseok that finally saw him and not someone like… Sehun instead. Lu Han’s seen the guy, and he seems the type to say “no” just to bully Lu Han.

 

“I am going to regret this. I just know it”, Minseok groans, “but fine. I’ll help you. Even if I have absolutely no idea how to do it.”

 

Lu Han’s so happy he actually dives forward and tries to hug Minseok, which just causes him to go through him.

 

It’s a sensation Lu Han would rather never experience again and he’s sure Minseok fully agrees.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My beta,P, is awesome as usual! Also, I have no idea how long this fic is going to be. I'm thinking about 20 chapters, so it will probably be at least 30 then.

If someone had asked Minseok a week ago whether he preferred obnoxious ghosts or scary ghosts, he would have answered obnoxious ten out of ten times.

 

Funny how fast he can change his mind sometimes. Or rather how _someone_ can change his mind.

 

“Minseok, I’m bored. Talk to me~” Lu Han whines and hovers over Minseok, being careful not to touch him. They are taking a class for variety shows and for the past ten minutes Lu Han hasn’t been paying any attention to the teacher. He says he’s already seen this class four different times. Maybe he has. It doesn’t mean Minseok has and if anything, he needs tips on how to do well in variety shows as he knows being outgoing and talkative isn’t his strongest forte. Lu Han knows very well Minseok can’t talk to him when there are other people around unless he wants Minseok to be permanently labeled as a lunatic. That doesn’t stop the ghost from bothering him though. If anything, he’s being even more annoying than usual.

 

“Can’t you just ditch the class? I can teach you this stuff later. Let’s go practice dancing instead.” Lu Han lays on his back in the air, loosely kicking his legs up and down. They go through Zitao’s head, but there is no reaction from the younger trainee. It truly seems that Minseok is the only one who can see, hear and feel Lu Han. Which means he’s also the only person for Lu Han to annoy.

 

Minseok regrets leaving his spoons at home.

 

He somehow endures the rest of the class, the only visible sign of his annoyance being the tight line of his mouth. As if being a trainee wasn’t hard enough, now he has to deal with a clingy ghost and somehow get him to debut or, as Lu Han had laid it out earlier, the ghost is “going to bother Minseok forever”.

 

When the class finally ends, Zitao asks him if he wants to come eat with him and Sehun. It takes all of Minseok’s willpower not to agree right away. If only to get away from Lu Han for a while. But he knows he can’t. Lu Han has been pestering him the whole day and Minseok hasn’t really spoken to him today since he’s been surrounded by people since the morning. Minseok hates himself for being a nice person and feeling sorry for the annoying ghost. With a sigh he denies the invitation, promising to treat the duo some other day. That earns him a wide smile from Zitao, because if there’s something the younger man likes, it’s being treated to food. Or anything else really, food and jewelry just being the top two choices.

 

“Finally, we are alone!” Lu Han lets out a deep sigh when they sit at their usual abandoned hallway. Minseok, on the other hand, lets his frustration out.

 

“I told you not to speak with me in class! It’s hard to concentrate when you’re trying to talk my ears off.”

 

“I can’t help it. I’ve been feeling lonely for years, and now I finally have you~” Lu Han singsongs, trying hard to act cute. Minseok isn’t buying it.

 

“You don’t ‘have me’. I’m just helping you get that peace you want and that’s it.”

 

Lu Han pouts. “Well, have you at least come up with a way for me to debut?”

 

“Of course not. How should I know how a ghost can debut? You’re the one who has all the time in the world to think about it. I need to train for my own debut!” Minseok reminds Lu Han. He’s somehow accepted it all easily. Lu Han being a ghost. Himself talking to an actual ghost and not just being mental. Trying to figure out how to get said ghost to debut…

 

“And what exactly do you think I am doing here? I am training too! I don’t have any more free time than you do. I even practice at night when there’s pretty much no one else in the building. I guess ghost muscles can’t get sore.” Lu Han defends himself. Minseok wants to argue back that it’s not Lu Han who has to struggle with training _and_ school, but in the end keeps his mouth shut. He’s feeling too tired to fight. He changes the topic instead, to something he’s been mildly curious about ever since Lu Han said he’s confident in his dancing a few days ago.

 

“Why don’t you show me what you’ve got then? If you say you’ve been training for years shouldn’t you be good?” Minseok challenges the ghost. He’s not a professional judge, but after all these months of dancing he can at least tell if the other sucks or not. And if he does then they have to decide if Lu Han should maybe pursue rapping or singing instead. Or with his looks he could easily be the visual of the group when he debuts. How is that debut going to happen, though? Minseok still has no clue.

 

Lu Han agrees and makes Minseok shuffle through his phone to pick something to play. They decide on a song of TVQX’s that they both seem to like. Actually, Lu Han seems to like the band itself and soon Minseok finds himself chatting happily about his favorite band with the other. He doesn’t even realize what he’s doing when he grins at Lu Han and claps his shoulder. The cold electricity that greets him there snaps him fast back to reality and with a cough Minseok pulls his hand back to himself.

 

“Sorry”, he mumbles. For a moment he almost forgot Lu Han is a ghost. Lu Han flashes him a reassuring smile and suddenly Minseok feels guilty. Here he is, bitching and moaning about Lu Han and not really wanting to help him, forgetting about the fact that the other is dead. Lu Han can never _really_ debut like Minseok, he can’t eat food anymore, he can’t even touch anything without his hand going through it. All he can do is just float around and talk to Minseok and yet it’s Minseok who thinks his life’s a drag. Hell, Lu Han doesn’t even have a life anymore.

 

“Sorry”, Minseok says again, this time meaning it. Annoying or not, Lu Han deserves his help. He may be dead, but it’s Minseok who’s always complaining. And that just doesn’t sound right.

 

“It’s fine. At least I feel something. Even if it doesn’t really feel nice.” Lu Han shrugs, then demanding Minseok to finally play the track. Minseok complies.

 

What Minseok can immediately tell is that Lu Han hasn’t been playing around. He can really dance. His moves have the kind of sharpness that comes with years or practice and yet they are smooth enough when they need to be. There’s balance in his movements too. At least Minseok thinks so. Yixing would probably be the better judge on that. The only thing that makes the performance feel slightly off is the fact that Lu Han floats. Sometimes his feet go through the floor and it just doesn’t look right.

 

“Okay, stop, _stop._ ” Minseok pauses the music. “You’re good. Like, _really_ good. I think you could easily be part of the dance line if you were alive”, he compliments Lu Han who beams at him, his face doing that little thing that makes him look slightly creepy. But he’s still handsome enough to pull it off without looking like total weirdo.

 

He’s handsome and can dance. If Lu Han was alive Minseok would probably be a little jealous. Even with that rather outdated hairstyle, his face is sharp and handsome while Minseok’s face is just… round. Round and boring, just like the rest of his body. The thought of it makes him sigh.

 

“You’re probably going to debut faster than me at this rate. I bet you sing like an angel too. In fact, aren’t you a little too perfect for a ghost? It kind of pisses me off”, Minseok rambles, letting himself crouch against the wall. Lu Han isn’t even that obnoxious, that’s probably just a side effect of only talking to yourself for years.

 

“That’s not true!” Lu Han floats next to him, looking shocked. Even that expression looks attractive on his face and Minseok curses mentally. Ghosts aren’t supposed to be this good looking, they are just supposed to be dead.

 

“You’re plenty good yourself too”, Lu Han continues, sitting right beside Minseok, his butt going slightly through the floor, “I’ve seen your moves in the shower. Despite your baby face, your dancing can look really erotic.”

 

Something cold runs through Minseok’s veins and it’s not because of Lu Han’s touch this time.

 

“You’ve… stalked me in the _showers_ …?” He grits his teeth together, hoping Lu Han thinks his face is steadily reddening because of anger and not embarrassment. He doesn’t dance in the shower unless he knows he’s completely alone there. Which he _clearly_ hasn’t been. Lu Han realizes his mistake and barely has time to quickly sink through the floor before Minseok’s fist hits the spot where he had sat just two seconds ago.

 

“I hope you die, you… you… _creeper_!” Minseok shouts after him, not caring if the whole building hears him.

 

Ten out of ten times he prefers scary ghosts over ghosts that secretly stalk your naked body in the showers. So much easier to deal with.

 


	6. Chapter 6

One out of ten times Lu Han is actually happy he’s already dead.

 

It means Minseok can’t kill him.

 

Unfortunately, it also means that when Minseok decides to completely ignore Lu Han for the rest of the week he’s back at talking to himself. He had tried to explain the whole situation the very next day. It hadn’t been just Minseok he’d been looking at in the showers. And he hadn’t been stalking! Aside from taking a shower, Lu Han had tried to test whether being naked made people more prone to hearing or feeling ghosts. It hadn’t.

 

His explanation had done absolutely nothing as Minseok still refused to even look at him (it’s amazing how flexible Minseok’s neck becomes once he’s doing his best at looking anywhere but at Lu Han).

 

Then Lu Han had tried telling him Minseok had absolutely nothing to be ashamed of when it came to his body.

 

That time he did get a reaction from Minseok: two big iron spoons flying through his head and then slamming against the wall. It seemed his only friend was mad and armed again. Lu Han faked the pain from the spoons, in case it would make Minseok happy, and then flew out of the other’s sight. He always knew you shouldn’t mess with the cute and small ones. Minseok and Kyungsoo were living proof of their scary wrath.

 

It had only been a short time, but it made Lu Han realize how happy he had been talking to Minseok. Now that he was being cruelly ignored and had no one to talk to except himself, time started to slow down again and Lu Han felt himself being a step closer to becoming a bitter ghost.

 

And bitter ghosts didn’t debut, that he knew for sure.

 

He had to get on Minseok’s good side again. And since he was almost an idol, what would be a better way to do it than singing? (Obviously Lu Han couldn’t just buy flowers and present them to the other with a cheesy “baby, forgive me” smile on his face, which would have been easier.) So, Lu Han picks the most dramatic song about forgiveness he can still remember and spends the next week leaving Minseok alone and practicing the song. He isn’t sure if it is possible to improve his voice in ghost form but to his own ears his singing ability does sound better than when he was still alive. Maybe if he hones his ghost powers too, not just his singing, he can record his voice somehow.

 

Doesn’t that happen in movies all the time? The main character listening to some random record and hearing some random ghost say something random there. Minseok could hear him, so what was stopping Lu Han from trying to record his voice? So what if he was dead, he could become the very first ghost idol! Truly an ideal situation. He could never age, never get tired or hungry like other idols. Probably never have dating scandals, because who would be foolish enough to want to date a ghost. He could even haunt his antis who post shit about him on Weibo!

 

But to do all that, he badly needed to be forgiven already.

 

It had been five to ten days since the last word from Minseok (Lu Han’s sense of time was getting a bit hazy again) and that was the absolute maximum Lu Han could deal with without getting a response. It was time to sing and impress Minseok.

 

He decides it’s best to recreate their first memory together. It’s a little past five in the morning when Minseok enters the gym, warily looking around. Lu Han is floating against the roof, hoping this won’t end like the first time. It feels like Minseok can sense him when he sharply looks up and his eyebrows scrunch together at the sight of Lu Han. He turns around, clearly intending to leave the gym, but Lu Han acts fast. He dives down from the ceiling to stand in front of Minseok.

 

“Please don’t go. Look, I’m sorry. I wasn’t being a pervert on purpose, I swear”, Lu Han apologizes, hoping the sincerity will shine through his eyes. It probably doesn’t since there’s no change in Minseok’s expression. It looks as cold as it has been looking all week. It doesn’t suit the other boy at all and Lu Han desperately wants to see the usual gummy smile again.

 

“If you want, I can take my clothes off, so we’re even”, Lu Han tries. He doesn’t actually want to take his clothes off in front of another dude and he isn’t even sure how that would happen since his hand would just go through the ghostly fabric anyway. But if it’s what it takes to make Minseok forgive him, he’s willing to try everything. Even acting a little homo for the sake of their… friendship? Acquaintance-ship? Minseok-helping-him-ship?

 

“I don’t want to see you naked!” Minseok snaps at him, before realizing he broke the silent treatment and then quietly cursing at himself.

 

“Ah, good. A-anyway! I’m truly sorry, so please, just talk to me again before I lose my mind.” Lu Han puts out his lower lip the way he’s seen Sehun do when the guy really wants something from his hyungs. Minseok still looks angry and keeps his mouth shut, so Lu Han reveals his trump card.

 

“I prepared a song for you. So, just… please listen to it and then decide if you’re still mad at me.”

 

Minseok is looking at the wall instead of Lu Han, but since he isn’t trying to get away either, Lu Han takes it as a good sign and coughs once or twice before opening his mouth to sing. If he can win Minseok’s forgiveness with his singing now, he can surely win over some fans in the future. Lu Han starts gently, slowly building more impact with his voice and when it’s finally time for the high notes, Lu Han’s voice is clear and strong, his eyes never leaving Minseok. Sure, the song is more about a guy asking for forgiveness from his girlfriend after cheating on her, but you play with the cards you’ve been dealt. Currently there are exactly zero songs Lu Han knows that are about a ghost “accidentally” seeing another boy’s dick and trying to apologize for that. The song is at its final notes, but Minseok is still clearly pretending he doesn’t care. Only when Lu Han is finally done with the song, Minseok sighs.

 

“I knew it. Your voice sounds way too good.”

 

Lu Han feels like he’s floating. Which he is.

 

“You could even say it’s beyond this world”, he smirks. Minseok rolls his eyes.

 

“Your puns are terrible. Like, Junmyeon-level terrible.”

 

“You love me anyway.” Lu Han shoots tiny invisible love bullets from his fingers towards Minseok. He’s beyond relieved the silent treatment seems to be over. The other only snorts.

 

“I most certainly don’t.”

 

“But you’ll forgive me, right?” Lu Han looks at Minseok from under his long eyelashes. He hates when people say he looks like a girl, but if that, together with his longish hair, makes him look cuter and thus more easily forgiven, he really doesn’t give a shit.

 

“…I guess. But if you ever, and I mean _ever,_ stalk people in the showers again I…” Minseok looks at Lu Han firmly and something seems slightly odd. His face is round and made for smiles, but now it looks dark and intimidating and Lu Han swears he can feel shivers even though it’s clearly impossible because he’s dead. He barely manages to stop a whimper trying to escape his mouth because that wouldn’t be manly at all.

 

“I won’t! I swear I won’t”, he hastily promises. He’ll just have to trust he isn’t going to sweat anymore. It will be another added bonus to being the world’s first ghost idol – his face is always going to be sweat-free and pretty.

 

Minseok narrows his eyes. “You’d better mean that too.”

 

Lu Han is all smiles. He doesn’t want to make Minseok angry ever again, being lonely is terrible after all. “Did you really like my singing?”

 

Minseok nods, “I did. It’s pissing me off. The fact that you’re dead and still better than me.”

 

“Debut material?” Lu Han asks hopefully. It’s been years since any kind of feedback and honestly, he’s started to wonder if his voice sounded good only to his own ears.

 

Minseok looks at Lu Han, his judging gaze moving from top to bottom. The impossible shivers are back and this time it’s Lu Han who opts to stare at the wall instead of the pretty cat eyes in front of him.

 

“Debut material”, Minseok finally agrees, smiling sweetly.

 

There are many pros to being dead. One out of ten times Lu Han’s glad he’s dead. He doesn’t have to pay taxes, he’s always hunger-free and can never overgrow his clothes. But there are cons too.

 

He can’t hug Minseok when he wants to.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My beta, P, is awesome as usual! Also, huge thanks to everyone/anyone who left comments<333

**CHAPTER 7**

Googling ‘ghost powers’ wasn’t how Minseok had imagined spending his rare free afternoon.

 

But here he is anyway, still hanging out in the SM building, because Lu Han keeps claiming he can’t step outside it. Very worrying news, if he ever wants to debut and perform on stages far away from the training building. So far Minseok has established that Lu Han can, in fact, sing and dance more than just well. Rap… not so much, but with his good looks included that would have been overkill. Lu Han hasn’t decided if he leans more towards singing or dancing and it annoys Minseok that he even has the option to choose. Minseok’s case is different. He can rap decently, dance decently and sing decently. He has decent looks. All this leaves Minseok wondering where his strength truly lies. He doesn’t have a honey-sounding voice like Jongdae or Kyungsoo nor can he dance as well as Jongin or Yixing. He can’t even spout words out of his mouth as fast as Chaneyol. And he’s not tall and handsome like Yifan. Most days Minseok feels like a lost cause, forgetting the fact that he’s not even _that_ bad, he’s just… in need of some self-confidence. Badly.

 

Which is why he finds himself helping Lu Han first. Help others to help yourself or however the saying goes. Maybe this will give him good karma points and help him to be more confident with the high notes he knows he can do.

 

“These are basically all saying the same thing. That ghosts with a lot of anger and bitterness can throw stuff around. Honestly, that doesn’t sound like someone who stalks people in the showers…” Minseok sighs and turns off his smartphone. He’s spent a good two hours going through different sites and there isn’t really anything that’s helping. It isn’t a surprise. After all, ghosts don’t even really exist. Or at least they shouldn’t.

 

“I thought you forgave me already…” Lu Han rolls his eyes. “But yeah, doesn’t sound like me at all. Maybe I can channel my passion towards ManU to that stuff instead?”

 

“You can try. But I’m not showing you any more matches on my phone, the battery is almost dead”, Minseok reminds the ghost. His phone’s been dead a lot lately and the front page of Youtube now consists of nothing but videos of Ronaldo scoring and highlights of ManU’s latest matches. Minseok misses his Messi videos, but at the same time he understands Lu Han. It would suck to go for years without knowing how your favorite team is doing just because nobody in the SM building cares about football. Nobody aside from Minseok anyway.

 

Lu Han frowns at him but doesn’t demand to see anything. Minseok watches Lu Han’s face tighten as he begins to concentrate on something, probably thinking about ManU’s latest victory and trying to channel that thought into some kind of power. Minseok doesn’t know, he’s not the ghost here. Lu Han is staring at the bottle next to Minseok’s leg with intense eyes.

 

Nothing happens for a good five minutes.

 

“Are you… trying to do something?” Minseok finally opens his mouth to ask. It could be just Lu Han lost deep in thought. Usually it’s not hard to guess what Lu Han is thinking. He’s been taking more acting classes than Minseok, but the ghost has the kind of face that betrays his thoughts to others. It’s pretty endearing which means Minseok is never going to tell the other that.

 

“I’m trying to channel all my happy thoughts and move the damn bottle, but it’s not working”, Lu Han sighs, giving up and slumping against the wall. Half of his back goes through it and Minseok looks away.

 

“This is not Harry Potter - you’re not summoning your Patronus! Why would you need happy thoughts to move one bottle?” Rubbing his forehead Minseok slumps against the wall too. SM should provide classes for practicing ghost skills too. With a loud groan Lu Han completely slumps against the floor, so that only his legs are visible, upper body disappearing into the wall. Minseok secretly wishes he would stop those freaky antics. He doesn’t want extra reminders that Lu Han’s dead. He hears vague mumbling behind the wall and Lu Han’s probably forgotten again that Minseok can’t go through walls nor hear things through them as easily as his ghost acquaintance.

 

“Okay, how about this? Since I’m the only one who sees you, why don’t you try touching my hand first. Maybe I have some kind of hidden power that affects ghosts”, Minseok says to the wall and a second later Lu Han pushes himself out of it and up to his feet again. There’s no frown visible on his face anymore, it’s all smiles instead. For a dead guy he can be awfully optimistic. It reminds Minseok of Baekhyun and he’s not sure if it’s a good or bad thing. He can barely deal with one Baekhyun let alone two.

 

“That actually sounds plausible!” Lu Han claps his hands together. His fingers are a mess, sliding through each other. For once Minseok doesn’t look away but offers his hand instead.

 

“So… try touching my hand. Without yours going through it”, he tells Lu Han, readying himself for the prickling pain that is about to come. Maybe it’s his tense shoulders or the thin line his usually plump lips form, but Lu Han seems to notice what Minseok is feeling. He suddenly looks hesitant, hiding his hands behind his back, eyes not quite meeting Minseok’s. He looks cute and Minseok suddenly feels the need to swallow.

 

“Don’t worry. It’s not like you’re actually hurting me. It’s just a feeling. Besides, my body feels worse after every dance practice”, Minseok assures him, moving his hand closer to Lu Han. “Just try to concentrate on making yourself… more meaty and less transparent, okay?”

 

Slowly, Lu Han nods and puts his hand right above Minseok’s. He gathers his concentration once again and Minseok can’t do anything but wait. He tries to keep his mind and body relaxed in case it somehow helps (it probably doesn’t). Lu Han moves his hand a little closer and there can’t be more than two or three millimeters of space between their hands now. Minseok waits and feels a tiny lump gather at the base of his throat. He can feel the faint electricity prickling his skin. The feeling comes as waves from Lu Han’s hand. It doesn’t feel bad, as they are not touching yet, and it helps Minseok to relax a bit more. Then Lu Han decides he’s trying hard enough and surges his hand down the last millimeters.

 

It goes straight through Minseok’s hand and they both groan in disappointment and in pain.

 

Minseok recovers first, not wanting to make Lu Han upset, because he still doesn’t know how many steps it will take before he turns into a bitter ghost wanting to smash Minseok through the walls. “It’s okay. I wasn’t really expecting it to work right away.”

 

Lu Han’s face is still slightly sour but he seems ready for round two, putting his hand above Minseok’s hand again. Minseok watches him scrunch his pretty eyebrows together.

 

The result is still the same.

 

After ten more attempts and flying through the SM building once, Lu Han comes back looking as frustrated as ever.

 

“I hate being dead!” He whines, “I can’t even touch you. This sucks! Everything sucks!”

 

Minseok attempts to calm him down and jokes, “Maybe it’s a good thing. I bet you’d be a clingy ghost if you managed to actually touch me.”

 

Lu Han gives him the evil eye. It seems the other isn’t in the mood for jokes right now. Minseok swiftly changes tactics.

 

“Relax, we’ll get it to work eventually. Let’s focus on something else first.”

 

Lu Han blows a lonely strand of hair out of his eyes. “Like on what?”

 

“Like…” Minseok thinks. “Like… on your death. Maybe there are clues there. How did you die again? Or is this a touchy subject…?” He doesn’t know if ghosts like to talk about their deaths or not. He probably wouldn’t want to if he was dead. But then again, he’s not the ever-so-optimistic person Lu Han is. Ghost Minseok would probably be bitter and angry from the very start. And still trying to lose weight. Dying now would be terrible. He would be a slightly chubby ghost for the rest of time. Minseok makes a silent prayer of dying only when he weighs a little less. He wants to be a good-looking ghost like Lu Han is.

 

“That’s…” Lu Han starts, “that’s a really good question.”

 

Minseok doesn’t quite follow. “What do you mean?”

 

Lu Han looks at him, uncertainty settling on his face. “I mean, I have no idea how I died.”

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My beta is <33 as usual!

All these free afternoons and it never occurred to Lu Han that he couldn’t remember how he had died.

 

After realizing the obvious problem, he finds himself sitting in the quiet hallway that’s quickly becoming his favorite spot in the SM building. It’s late at night and Minseok has already gone home, after claiming he needed sleep if he wanted to survive tomorrow’s dance lessons alive. Feeling bored and lonely leaves Lu Han no other option than desperately trying to remember how exactly his life had ended again.

 

You would think your own death has the priority in a ghost’s mind, but apparently it doesn’t. Or perhaps this is another bullet point added to the list explaining why Lu Han is a complete failure when it comes to being a ghost. Now that he is finally starting to think about his death, he realizes he can’t remember anything. He vaguely remembers being alive, practicing normally and then suddenly… he’s become a ghost. But whatever occurred in between that, Lu Han has no memory of. There are some hints to the story though. Since he apparently can’t leave the SM building, there’s a very strong possibility he had died here.

 

The option leaves Lu Han wondering how exactly one dies in the SM Entertainment building anyway. There were no trucks to run over your fragile body, nor did armed robbers usually come in to steal things and shoot people. Had he just over-exercised? Maybe Lu Han had suffered a heart attack after another cruel dance practice. Not cool, but not completely impossible either. Despite his manly image he had never been the one with an overly strong body. Lu Han just sincerely hopes his death wasn’t something like slipping in the showers and hitting his head. Just imagining himself lying there, dead and his dick out for everyone to see… Terrible, absolutely terrible. That wouldn’t make a cool backstory for the world’s first ghost idol at all. He needed to find out how he had died as soon as possible. Then he could at least decide whether to publish the story in the future or make up something more heroic like dying while saving a kitten from a tree (and hope netizens won’t dig too deep into his background).

 

Too bad he still has to wait another five hours before Minseok’s coming back. Being a ghost is easier with the other trainee around, but the moment Minseok goes home, Lu Han remembers again that being a ghost actually sucks ass. Big time. Concentrating on the water bottle in front of him Lu Han tries to at least make his alone time useful and get a literal handful of the bottle. In between trying to remember something about his death and giving up on that, he’s been practicing this. So far all of his attempts have failed, making Lu Han’s hand go through the bottle as usual. He doesn’t dare to lose hope just yet though, maybe he just needs more practice. Practice needs time and time is one thing Lu Han isn’t lacking.

 

Somewhere between attempt 300 and 340 (he had lost count forever ago) with the bottle, he hears a familiar voice wishing him good morning. Or more like a familiar yawn as he looks up to see Minseok rubbing his sleepy eyes. Lu Han’s mood immediately lifts as he jumps up from the floor.

 

“You’re back, Baozi!” He smiles at his human companion.

 

Minseok freezes mid-rubbing and looks confused. “Baozi?”

 

Oh, right. Maybe attempts between 239 and 297 never happened because suddenly Lu Han had found himself thinking about Minseok’s cheeks. Or more like, he had started to think about steamed buns (just because he couldn’t get hungry anymore didn’t mean he didn’t think about food every now and then) and there it was - an image of Minseok’s pale cheeks. Soft and round. Extremely pinchable. Just thinking about them had made Lu Han’s fingers twitch. He hadn’t realized it before, but he really wanted to pinch those cheeks. Judging from the singing lessons Lu Han had been stalk… errr, attending, he bets Minseok would make a cute high-pitched sound if someone were to pinch those cheeks.

 

Lu Han wants to be that someone. Badly.

 

Experimentally he lifts his hand closer to Minseok’s right cheek. They’ve already spent enough time together that the other doesn’t flinch out of Lu Han’s “touch” anymore. He only looks at him with his right eyebrow raised like he usually does when the ghost is doing something questionable. Maybe if Lu Han’s desire to touch those cheeks is strong enough, then…

 

His hand goes through Minseok’s cheek and they both flinch for a second because of electricity.

 

So much for that theory.

 

“Lu Han? The baozi? What was that about?” Minseok asks and rubs his cheeks when Lu Han finally pulls his hand off. Right, he never did explain that before trying to fondle Minseok’s cheek. Lu Han vaguely proceeds to explain something about having craved steamed buns last night and the connection he had made between those and Minseok’s cheeks. Minseok doesn’t look impressed as he presses his hands to his cheeks, trying to flatten them. It’s like he doesn’t like them and it’s something Lu Han can’t even begin to understand. Minseok’s cheeks are adorable. The kind that you would want to take a big bite of.

 

Lu Han doesn’t voice these thoughts to Minseok.

 

Minseok is still pressing his cheeks while averting his eyes and Lu Han thinks it’s time to change the subject. Clearly this one is too touchy for whatever reason.

 

“So, did you find anything about my death?” He casually asks, hoping the answer is anything but a shower accident. Minseok shakes his head, cheeks finally forgotten.

 

“Was I supposed to look into it? You’re the one who died, can’t you just tell me?”

 

“And I told you I can’t remember.” Lu Han spreads his arms, trying to make Minseok understand his point. “Can’t you just ask someone?”

 

Minseok scrunches his eyebrows together, thinking hard. “Like who exactly?”

 

“Junmyeon! We trained at the same time, so he would know, right?” Lu Han explains. Maybe they should have gone to Junmyeon ages ago already. Lu Han just didn’t think remembering his own death would bring him any closer to debuting. But since nothing else is working right now maybe it’s worth the shot.

 

Minseok shoots a disbelieving look at the ghost. “What, am I just supposed to go to him and ask, ‘ _Hey, how did Lu Han die again?’_ I’m not even supposed to know you!”

 

Crossing his arms, Lu Han smirks. “Exactly. Unless you want to go bother Sooman.”

 

The next thing he knows is Minseok pulling Junmyeon with him the moment he spots the other trainee walking towards the dance studio early in the afternoon. Lu Han silently follows them, thinking _please, no shower accidents._ He would rather keep his manly and cool image with Minseok if possible.

 

“What did you want to talk about, hyung?” Junmyeon asks with an everlasting bright smile and if he notices Minseok slightly fidgeting, he doesn’t comment on it.

 

“Do you remember a trainee called Lu Han?” Minseok doesn’t beat around the bush. Lu Han watches Junmyeon’s reaction and sees his smile falter. He obviously remembers!

 

“That’s… that’s a name I haven’t heard in a long time. What about him?” Junmyeon’s smile is completely gone by the time he answers. Seeing his sullen expression makes Lu Han feel like suddenly he isn’t so eager to hear about his death anymore. But before he can stop Minseok, the other is already speaking.

 

“I… I heard someone mentioning him the other day, but… the way they talked about him seemed off. Like he wasn’t just a trainee who quit?” Minseok stumbles through his words, trying to think of an excuse for why he’s suddenly interested in Lu Han’s history, without alarming Junmyeon. Something sparks in Lu Han’s mind. What if he had quit indeed? Quit and then committed suicide, not being able to deal with his dream of being an idol shattering. Suddenly a shower accident sounds oddly nice compared to that.

 

Junmyeon looks exactly how you’d picture one looking ~~,~~ when going through unpleasant memories. Lu Han doesn’t remember them ever interacting too much, but it’s nice to see Junmyeon isn’t being completely cold about his death.

 

“That’s right. He didn’t quit. There… there was an accident”, Junmyeon explains.

 

Minseok hesitates for a second and Lu Han feels the same.

 

“What kind of accident?”

 

“He”, Junmyeon starts, clearly not wanting to talk about the topic. “He fell down the stairs. Someone told me he had accidentally stepped on a stray bottle and… well, you know…” Junmyeon finishes, looking miserable. Minseok looks miserable too, but he still squeezes Junmyeon’s arm as an act of comfort. Nobody’s squeezing Lu Han’s arm and probably never will.

 

Without another word he flies off.

 


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, this is finally back. My beta continues being awesome!

Minseok finally gets worried when he hasn’t seen Lu Han for a whole week.

 

He doesn’t easily admit it, but he’s grown used to the ghost’s company by now. Even his annoying habit of not caring about being dead doesn’t bother Minseok all that much anymore. So, when he finally gets a week free of his dead friend, the building suddenly feels a lot quieter than before. Minseok’s not sure how that is even possible when he’s still surrounded by loud living beings such as Chaneyol and Baekhyun. He supposes he’s too used to Lu Han trying to talk his ears off whenever Minseok has class where everyone studies silently. He hasn’t known Lu Han for that long, but the empty space the ghost left behind feels bigger than it should.

 

Perhaps he never should have asked Junmyeon about Lu Han’s death. The worst-case scenario Minseok can come up with is the ghost remembering his accident again, making Lu Han somehow disappear from this world and/or from Minseok’s sight. Then again, Lu Han finding peace is the scenario they were aiming for, so maybe him disappearing is a good thing. Too bad he never managed to debut before finding his peace.

 

Minseok just wishes he could have at least said goodbye before whatever happened to Lu Han came to pass.

 

When another day goes by without a sound from Lu Han, Minseok’s getting sure he’s never going to hear from the ghost ever again. He sighs in defeat, getting ready to head home. Minseok doesn’t have a reason to stay after dance practice anymore, not when there’s no clingy Lu Han around demanding his company for at least one more hour just because the ghost feels lonely. Minseok walks out of the building with Sehun, giving one last look to the empty hallways behind them.

 

There’s nothing or no one to see.

 

“Hyung.” Sehun clears his throat when they’ve almost reached the train station. “You seem down lately. Did something happen?”

 

The question makes Minseok snap out of his thoughts He hadn’t realized he had missed Lu Han enough to make himself look depressed. He isn’t surprised Sehun noticed, though; the kid often worries over others despite being younger than most of the other trainees.

 

“It’s nothing”, Minseok reassures Sehun with a gentle smile they’ve been practicing in acting classes. “I just haven’t heard from my friend lately.”

 

“Oh.” Is Sehun’s response. It makes Minseok feel slightly guilty. He should have known better than to worry the youngster. Sehun bites his lower lip briefly before continuing. “Have you tried calling them?”

 

Before Minseok can stop himself, he laughs out loud. Maybe he should have gotten Lu Han’s phone number in case the other had a ghost phone with him.

 

“He doesn’t have a phone”, Minseok says while trying to force the too wide smile off his face. He doesn’t want Sehun to think he thought his question was that laughable. “But I’m sure he’s doing alright. You don’t have to worry about me or him, Sehun.”

 

“Alright then…” Sehun agrees quietly and Minseok pats him on the back. Most of the time Sehun is a little brat but he still only wishes the best for everyone, and Minseok likes the kid for it.

 

“There’s still time before your train departs, let hyung buy you a bubble tea for making you worry so much”, the elder offers, hoping to make Sehun smile again. When he sees the familiar, enthusiastic grin before him, Minseok knows he has succeeded.

 

It takes another three days before he sees the familiar out-of-fashion sneakers hovering above the floor.

 

“So, you’re not dead after all”, Minseok comments, raising his left eyebrow and trying to ignore the heavy load lifting from his heart.

 

“I am. In case you forgot”, Lu Han retorts back, not offering any other explanation and making Minseok dig for the information himself.

 

“Where did you go? I thought you found peace or something”, Minseok gives up and asks. There’s a silent accusation of _why didn’t you say anything to me before going? You made me worry, you dumbass,_ which he doesn’t dare to say out loud. Lu Han seems to read it in his eyes anyway, because he hangs his head down like Chaneyol does when he’s seeking forgiveness from Kyungsoo.

 

“Sorry.” Lu Han pouts. It’s rather cute and Minseok finds himself looking away.

 

“I was practicing”, the ghost then adds, again letting Minseok be the one to ask for details.

 

“Practicing what exactly?”

 

“When I heard about what Junmyeon said, I thought… well, since I was stupid enough to step on a bottle and die, I thought I could use it. To make myself angry at bottles and…” Lu Han drifts off. Minseok suddenly understands what he was doing.

 

“Oh, were you trying to touch the bottles? Channel your bitterness towards them or something?”

 

Lu Han nods. “Yeah. Didn’t work though. And in the end, I missed you too much, so I gave up.”

 

The statement makes Minseok’s cheeks burn for reasons he doesn’t understand. Shaking his head slightly, as if he could get rid of the redness that way, he asks, “Why didn’t you just practice with me anyway?”

 

Smiling sheepishly, Lu Han explains. “I was trying to get angry. Of course I don’t want you around in case I lose it and try to kill you or something.” Minseok blinks at that. Sometimes it’s way too easy to forget Lu Han is, in fact, a ghost. And there aren’t too many stories about friendly ghosts. Still, he can’t bring himself to feel afraid around Lu Han. He hasn’t been afraid of him ever since that one Chinese class, and it’s hard to imagine starting to feel that way again. He’s even left his trusted iron spoons at home. Lu Han’s too pretty to become a killer ghost anyway.

 

“Well, did you? Lose control?” Minseok still asks, even if he’s pretty sure he already knows the answer.

 

“Nah. I only became bored. Reminded me too much of the time you were giving me the silent treatment for a week”, Lu Han sighs, and Minseok has to bite his tongue so that he doesn’t snap at Lu Han. Never again does he want to be reminded of the fact that Lu Han’s seen him dancing in the showers. Instead, Minseok drives the conversation in a different direction. Something he has been wanting to tell Lu Han ever since their conversation with Junmyeon.

 

“Do you want to know how long you’ve been dead? I asked Junmyeon. About the year of the accident. And how old you were. Since you once said you didn’t remember anymore.”

 

Lu Han’s eyes widen, like he hadn’t even thought about such a possibility. He stares at Minseok hungrily and nods.

 

Minseok tells him, and the ghost can only stare at him with a dumbdfounded look on his face.

 

“What do you mean”, Lu Han pipes up after finally finding his voice again. “It’s only been five years? It sure felt like fifteen! And…”

 

Minseok watches as Lu Han’s face gets more and more upset by the second. Maybe he shouldn’t have said anything. Nobody probably wants to know how long they’ve been dead.

 

“And… I can’t believe you’re _older_ than me! That can’t be correct, you’re such a baby bao—”

 

Minseok smacks the ghost on the head, and this time he doesn’t even mind the shivers going through them both.

 

He’s already starting to miss his week-long vacation from Lu Han.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> XOXOs to my beta, P!

 

It only takes one day of not seeing Minseok to drive Lu Han almost mad.

 

This is different from the time when he was practicing with the bottle all alone. He had claimed that he had been staying away from his friend back then, but that wasn’t the entire truth. Lu Han had sometimes poked his head out of the ceiling of the dance studio just to take a sneak peek at Minseok’s dancing. He had been making sure the other was doing fine before flying back to the abandoned bottle, fully determined to grab it this time.

 

But this is different. It’s 8 am and Minseok’s nowhere to be seen. He should have been here ages ago, exercising and trying to lose some non-existent fat on the treadmill. (Lu Han doesn’t understand it. He likes Minseok’s body the way it is, but the elder doesn’t listen to his protests.) Instead Lu Han finds himself getting more anxious by the second when there’s still no sight of the other. He’s checked everywhere: the gym, dance studio, classrooms. He’s even followed Sehun and Jongdae around, the two people he’s seen Minseok hang out with the most lately, and still come out empty handed. It’s one thing not to be able to talk to Minseok because the other is pissed at him. He’s been there before, and while it’s not fun, at least Minseok’s still around. But this? This is Lu Han wanting to take a look at the elder’s plump face but not having a chance to do so. How is he supposed to be concentrating on his ghost training or singing lessons when he hasn’t had his breakfast yet?! (He may have imagined biting Minseok’s round baozi cheeks more often than he should, but that’s probably only because he was a fan of steamed buns when he was still alive.) Lu Han is forced to do the unthinkable and reveal a very unmanly side of himself, just lying on the floor in agony, trying not to think about how much he wants to see Minseok’s face. Even if just for a second.

 

His wish comes true two days later.

 

“Where were you!?” Lu Han all but yells when he’s blessed with the sight of full cheeks again, hidden behind a white face mask. He wishes he was a properly educated ghost, so he could use his powers and remove that stupid mask. Aside from the cheeks, he really misses seeing Minseok’s naturally pouty lips. Lu Han finds it funny how Minseok doesn’t think he’s good-looking. While Lu Han sometimes hates his own face for being too pretty and not manly enough, he appreciates Minseok’s beautiful face. He’s been trying to make the elder understand how nice his round, pale cheeks look, but Minseok acts like he doesn’t hear the ghost. Or if he’s already in a bad mood, Lu Han finds himself being grabbed by the neck. Or rather just Minseok’s hand going through his neck. Still highly uncomfortable for the both of them. Minseok’s eyes are catlike. They look clever and Lu Han can’t wait to see the day someone applies stage make-up on them. He bets they’ll look even more gorgeous. He’s been telling as much to Minseok, but the elder always shrugs things like that off, getting all embarrassed when Lu Han is just trying to give him some more self-confidence without mentioning shower dances again.

 

Trying to boost Minseok’s ego isn’t something the ghost does only for fun. After all, Lu Han now has another dream. He still wants to debut, and now he wants to do it together with Minseok. And the sooner Minseok gets all confident about himself, the sooner he’s going to debut. With Lu Han, hopefully. He still has no idea how it’s going to happen, but the ghost doesn’t want to worry about it now, not when Minseok’s finally back.

 

“I was sick.” Minseok’s voice is still hoarse and muffled by the mask. Lu Han can imagine it, Minseok being all sweaty and red-faced, lying on the bed, whimpering softly and his breathing being all heavy.

 

… Because he was sick. Lu Han has to blink just to make himself remember that. He decides to include safer details in his thoughts. Minseok coughing, drinking warm soup, probably sneezing for the hundredth time. He doesn’t dare to speak again until he’s sure his thoughts are all proper.

 

“You shouldn’t leave me alone. What if I become evil and start haunting people for real?” Lu Han rants, floating alongside Minseok while the other is climbing a staircase.

 

Behind his mask, Minseok snorts. “Yeah, you could probably annoy someone to their early death.”

 

“I wouldn’t…!”

 

“Or talk about ManU so much you drive someone to the point of insanity.”

 

“I don’t…! Is that how you really see me?” Lu Han doesn’t mean to sound hurt, because he’s a manly man (or a manly ghost) and getting hurt by something like that would be rather pathetic of him. Yet he can’t ignore the sting inside him, and it’s not because of Minseok’s arm accidentally touching him. Apparently he’s not that good at masking his emotions despite all the acting classes, because Minseok eyes suddenly look apologetic.

 

“No, of course not. I was just joking.”

 

Lu Han nods. Of course Minseok’s joking. He’s not really annoyed with Lu Han. If he were, that would be the end of the world for Lu Han. Again. Imagine not getting along with the one person that can actually talk to you. Maybe that’s how bitter killer ghosts are born. They accidentally talked about their favorite football team a bit too much and suddenly noticed they were all alone again, having chased their only friend away.

 

Maybe admitting Messi is actually a quality player will make Minseok hate him less. Lu Han opens his mouth, ready to praise Barcelona’s star player, but the elder speaks first.

 

“Lu Han. You’re not annoying. In fact, I do like you and I hope we can make you debut soon.” Minseok’s voice is all gentle despite his sore throat, and Lu Han is having a hard time fighting off the tears trying to form in the corners of his eyes.  He likes Minseok too. The elder is a great friend, and yes, by now they surely are friends. He’s not going to doubt that anymore or wonder whether he should call Minseok an acquaintance or something else. You don’t go mad over not seeing an acquaintance for three days. That’s friendship for you. A very manly friendship.

 

“Okay”, the ghost nods, not quite knowing what to say next. Minseok doesn’t speak either, just pulls out his cellphone and sits on the floor. They’ve reached their safe place. A hallway on the upper floors of the training building, where anyone rarely comes until it’s way past the afternoon. Lu Han sits next to the other, leaving a tiny space between them so they won’t feel the cold shocks touching each other causes. He takes a quick sneak peek at the screen of Minseok’s phone and there’s video footage of ManU’s game playing. Lu Han hasn’t seen it before, so it’s probably only a couple of days old. Ignoring the screen for a moment, the ghost takes a look at Minseok’s face. The elder is smiling at him. Lu Han doesn’t actually see his mouth because the mask is still in the way (seriously, does Minseok think Lu Han will catch his cold? He’s dead for heaven’s sake, he can’t get sick anymore), but he can see it in the other’s eyes.

 

“I bet you missed seeing this more than me.” Minseok’s tone’s cheeky when he tilts his phone ~~~~so Lu Han has a better view of the screen.

 

“Of course”, Lu Han replies out loud. _Not_ , he finishes in his mind. Sure, he had missed seeing ManU’s games, but that doesn’t even come close to how much he had missed Minseok. He doesn’t say it to the other though, somehow feeling too shy. Maybe it’s a ghost thing, because Lu Han can’t really remember the last time he was feeling shy (then again, there are a lot of things he doesn’t remember anymore). He’s a manly ghost, not some high school girl who is too embarrassed to say their true feelings out loud. Still, he keeps quiet as they sit side by side on the floor, the only sound coming from the phone. It’s oddly peaceful, and Lu Han likes it. In fact, he’s forgotten all about being dead and wanting to debut. Now he just wants this. Sitting together with Minseok, watching football on the tiny screen, possibly for eternity.

 

There’s a strange feeling forming inside of him that makes the ghost somewhat restless.

 

Not seeing Minseok makes Lu Han mad, but being with him like this makes him even madder.

 

Just for a different reason he can’t quite explain.

 


End file.
